A journalist's account of a Cambodian activist's death

Here's a quick pointer to a piece in the Daily Beast by freelance reporter Olesia
Plokhii, who worked at The Cambodia Daily
in Phnom Penh until May this year. Plokhii's moving story, "Death
of a Forester," describes the death of Chut Wutty, a Cambodian activist who
was shot a few feet away from Plokhii and another journalist, Phorn Bopha, while
he accompanied them to an illegal logging site in a protected forest in Koh
Kong province.

I came to know him as a reclusive,
meticulous and compassionate man. I witnessed his outrage at how Cambodia's
woodlands are falling victim to two-faced politicians, ruthless businessmen,
lethargic NGOs, and uniformed thugs. I saw the way his own hunger for justice
inspired villagers to stand up. His dedication was total. Some nights he would
sleep in a hammock in the forest, within range of armed henchmen paid by
illegal loggers, his global positioning system in his pocket and his camera at
hand, plotting nonviolent counterattacks on behalf of voiceless communities.
"It's in my character to do dangerous jobs," he said in a 2001 interview. "If I
don't do these things, life won't be important to me."

Cambodian journalists have been threatened in the past for
reporting on alleged government complicity in illegal logging, according to CPJ research. International environmental groups say the government and the
military are frequently complicit in the rampant illegal logging in Cambodia, The
Associated Press reported.

Plokhii's moving 2,600-word account of the episode is still
available online. It's definitely worth a read.

Bob Dietz, coordinator of CPJ’s Asia Program, has reported across the continent for news outlets such as CNN and Asiaweek. He has led numerous CPJ missions, including ones to Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka. Follow him on Twitter @cpjasia and Facebook @ CPJ Asia Desk.